Ranji Trophy | Railways toils as Tamil Nadu pulls away with a huge lead

CRICKET | Mohamed Ali frustrates the host’s bowlers along with the lower order batters before Gurjapneet strikes early again for the visitor

It has been a tough couple of days for Railways. The host conceded a 209-run lead against Tamil Nadu and lost half its side for 169 runs in a Ranji Trophy Group-D match at the Narendra Modi Stadium here on Friday.

The Railways players — who had to spend 133.3 overs fielding as TN amassed 438 in its first innings — were vocal and animated when several lbw and caught-behind appeals did not go their way.

The Railways contingent — with a non-verbal approach to convey its message — ‘clapped’ in unison, looking at the umpires as they walked off the field after the third day’s play.

TN’s S. Mohamed Ali (91, 174b, 10x4, 1x6), with valuable contributions from the lower-order, took the side’s overnight lead of 95 to above 200.

Mohamed played the ball to its merit in his superb innings and pieced together an 80-run stand with S. Ajith Ram for the seventh wicket.

Kunal Yadav (five for 133) removed Ajith Ram and S. Lakshay Jain in quick succession, and this changed Mohamed’s approach. He decided to farm the strike and go for boundaries with No. 10 Gurjapneet Singh at the other end. This saw the end of Mohamed as he was caught at long-on.

Railways may have thought it saw light at the end of the long tunnel.

However, 16-year-old Pranav Ragavendra and Gurjapneet frustrated the bowlers with a 36-run stand. An extended first session too was not enough for Railways to end its ordeal, as TN was only dismissed after lunch.

To make things worse, skipper Pratham Singh lost his stumps off the first ball of Railways’ second innings as Gurjapneet continued his habit of striking early.

The Railways top-order proceeded briskly after that. Vivek Singh (63, 81b) and S.A. Ahuja (36, 41b) engaged in a 65-run stand before Mohammad Saif joined the opener for a 70-run association. However, three late-evening jolts saw Railways slipping from 135 for three to 150 for five.

It is safe to say that unless Saif (52 batting) does something special, the visitor will travel back with a victory in its bag.

The scores:

Railways — 1st innings: 229.

Tamil Nadu — 1st innings: Shahrukh Khan c Vivek b Shivam 86, N. Jagadeesan lbw b Shivam 56, Vijay Shankar c Ahuja b Yuvraj 11, Pradosh Ranjan Paul c Merai b Himanshu 38, Andre Siddarth b Kunal 78, S. Mohamed Ali c Merai b Shivam 91, R. Sonu Yadav c Vivek b Kunal 4, S. Ajith Ram c Upendra b Kunal 27, S. Lakshay Jain b Kunal 0, Gurjapneet Singh b Kunal 24, Pranav Ragavendra (not out) 12; Extras: (b-2, lb-5, nb-3, w-1): 11; Total (in 133.3 overs): 438.

Fall of wickets: 1-137, 2-158, 3-160, 4-234, 5-308, 6-314, 7-394, 8-398, 9-402.

Railways bowling: Himanshu 17-5-53-1, Kunal 31.3-0-133-5, Akash 37-6-88-0, Yuvraj 15-2-49-1, Saif 5-0-27-0, Shivam 27-5-77-3, Pratham 1-0-4-0.

Railways — 2nd innings: Pratham Singh b Gurjapneet 0, Vivek Singh c Jagadeesan b Sonu 63, S.A. Ahuja b Lakshay 36, Mohammad Saif (batting) 52, Upendra Yadav b Sonu 1, B.H. Merai c Andre b Ajith Ram 1, Shivam Chaudhary (batting) 12; Extras: (b-4): 4; Total (for five wkts. in 45 overs): 169.

Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-65, 3-135, 4-145, 5-150.

Tamil Nadu bowling: Gurjapneet 8-2-21-1, Sonu 12-1-46-2, Pranav 2-0-15-0, Ajith Ram 10-1-19-1, Lakshay 7-0-47-1, Mohamed Ali 6-1-17-0.

Published - November 15, 2024 08:23 pm IST